Escaping Memories

by Amanda Siegrist

  "Yeah, sort of. I'm going to go fast, so keep up with me and don't think, just say," Kat said, leaning forward a bit.

  "Okay. Fire away."

  Kat nodded and set her cup of tea on the floor. "Alright...take a deep breath, Doni. You're in for it."

  Doni laughed as she took a deep breath and nodded she was ready.

  "What's your favorite color?"

  "I don't know."

  "Scones or muffins?"

  "Muffins."

  "Sweet or sour?"

  "Sour."

  "Short or tall?"

  Doni laughed. "Huh?"

  "Don't think, just say, remember?" Kat laughed back.

  "Tall."

  "Brown or blue?"

  "Brown."

  "Soup or salad?"

  "Soup."

  "Married or single?"

  "Single."

  Kat raised her brows at that, but kept on firing her questions. "Brother or sister?"

  "Brother...brother...I think I have a brother," Doni said, sitting up straighter. "It's right there, on the tip of my mind, his name."

  "Good, Doni. This is good. I don't think you're married either."

  "You really think so?"

  "Well, I can't say for sure, but yeah. The subconscious is a powerful thing."

  "That was a good exercise. Thanks, Kat."

  "Are you okay? You look sad now. I have to say, not an expression I'm fond of. So, knock it off," Kat said with a gentle smirk.

  Doni laughed lightly. "I can't help it now. A brother. I feel it. It's right there. Do you think he's worried about me?"

  "Of course. Why wouldn't he be? You're awesome. I pretty much know everything so no point in arguing with me."

  "I like you, Kat."

  "I like you...Doni."

  "Would you mind terribly if I rest my eyes? I suddenly feel tired."

  "Nope. Rest is good for you. You should, actually," Kat said, grabbing her cup of tea from the floor and stood up.

  "You'll wake me when Logan gets back. Like right away?" Doni asked with a slice of panic.

  "Of course. Right away," Kat said, reaching out for her cup of tea. "Are you done with that? I can take it."

  Doni nodded appreciatively, handing it to Kat. She scooted lower onto the couch and closed her eyes as Kat walked to the kitchen. Kat poured herself some more tea, leaned against the counter, and glanced over at the couch. She started to smile wide as she raised the cup to her lips.

  A few hours later, Kat finally heard voices coming up to the door. She stood up quickly from the table, just as Logan opened the door. He saw her put a finger to her lips and make a shooing motion with her hands for them to step outside. He quietly retreated his steps and waited at the bottom of the steps for Kat to join them.

  "How long has she been sleeping?" Logan asked, the concern clear in his eyes.

  "A couple of hours. Did she get any sleep last night?" Kat asked with her firm nurse's voice.

  "Besides the moment she woke up in complete terror, yes, she did," Logan said, rubbing a hand down his face.

  "She mentioned that to me. Did you find something?" Kat asked, placing her hands on her hips.

  "No. We were able to track her to the hill she mentioned. We think she took a tumble down it. Very surprised she doesn't have more injuries. Tracked her blood trail another half a mile from the top of the hill where her trail slowly started to die. Nothing around the area but trees and more trees," Derek said.

  "She made a mention of no windows in the room. Maybe it's somewhere underground," Kat said.

  "Could be. We didn't see anything unusual. We'll have to take another look. Spread out further, maybe with some four-wheelers so we can cover more ground a little faster. It's getting too late for that now," Logan replied, running a hand through his hair. "Is she okay? Did you check her out a little more? Does she need to go to the hospital?"

  "No, she's fine. No cracked ribs, but very bruised. I took the socks off and wrapped her feet in gauze, though. Make sure to check and re-wrap her feet daily. I don't believe she has a serious head injury. Her memory loss, I think, is repressed by her."

  "Too much trauma?" Derek asked.

  "Yeah, I think so. Something bad happened to her. I don't think I even want to know." Kat shivered just picturing the horrifying things Doni probably endured. "Oh, she has a brother."

  Logan looked confused. "How do you know that?"

  "I played a little game with her, throwing out questions really quickly. She likes muffins, soup, the color brown," Kat said, pausing for a moment as she raised a brow at Logan. "Tall..."

  "And you keep looking at me like that, why?" Logan asked.

  "I think she's becoming a little attached to you, Logan. She was very...panicky for a long while after you left. I eventually got her calm and now I'd say we're friends. She insisted I wake her up immediately when you got back. Your eyes are brown. You're tall."

  "You like muffins and soup, too," Derek added in with a grin.

  Logan pinched the bridge of his nose to gather his patience. "Are you two done? I helped her last night. I was the first person she laid eyes on. Maybe she's a little attached because of that. Don't read anything into it. Back to the brother part, please."

  Kat gave him a sassy grin, puckering her lips as she thought of digging deeper. "I said brother or sister, and she popped out brother, then hesitated and sounded very sure she had one. She's also not married. Unattached. Free to date. Single."

  Logan gave Kat one of his special glares just for her. "And you know the marriage part, how?"

  "Same game. I said married or single. She said single," Kat said.

  "You drive me nuts sometimes," Logan said.

  "Good kind of nuts, though. I did good. Admit it."

  "Were you always this annoying growing up?" Derek asked, enjoying the family sparring going back and forth.

  "Of course, Grahamikins," Kat said, blowing him a kiss.

  "I hate it when you call me that. Don't call me that, Kitty Kat," Derek said back.

  Kat raised a brow with a pointed glower at him when Logan said, "Did she remember her brother's name?"

  Kat slowly moved her annoyed face from Derek to Logan. "No. Thought of a name for her as well. I called her honey...and it was just weird."

  "Why would you even call her that?" Derek asked with a chuckle.

  "She wasn't answering me and had this, like, glazed look on her face. She snapped out of it when I called her that. I asked if she remembered something, but she said no. I think she sort of was, though."

  "What name?" Logan asked, ready to leave these two standing here.

  "Doni."

  Derek started laughing. "That sounds like a guy."

  "Yeah, well, she liked it. I made it up out of the words 'I don't know' since she just kept saying that a lot. I first said Kit, but she liked Doni better," Kat said.

  Logan smiled at the thought of her saying 'I don't know'. She did say that a lot. He snapped out of his wandering thoughts when he heard Derek laugh. "I like Doni much better than Kit. Really, Kat?"

  "We were having fun," Kat said with a smile.

  "Maybe she should stay with you. I mentioned that to Logan already," Derek said, giving a hesitant look at Logan, who made no response.

  Kat glanced at him as well. "As much as I'd like that, and I would gladly take her in, I don't think she will. Like I said, she seems very attached to Logan. We can suggest it to her. What do you think, Logan?"

  "Whatever she wants. I just want to help her in any way I can and find the bastard who hurt her," Logan said with more certainty than he felt. "If she agrees, I want you to keep your gun handy."

  "You don't trust her?" Derek asked, surprised, jumping in before Kat could respond.

  "Of course I do. But we don't know who took her, and before the incident with Baxter, I would have never thought anyone I know in this town capable of that sort of violence. I know better now. Someone in this town is the most likely culprit at kidnapping he
r and holding her against her will. I want Kat armed in case that person tries coming back for her. It just occurred to me, really, when Kat asked me what I thought. She escaped. With the extent of her injuries, do you honestly think someone just let her go? She had to have escaped," Logan said, running another hand through his hair.

  "Well, on second thought, maybe she should stay with you. I have to work. We shouldn't leave her alone, if that's the case. You have off for the next week," Kat pointed out.

  "Damn, I guess you're right, Kitty Kat," Derek said.

  Kat glared at him out of the corner of her eyes, then eyed Logan full-on when he said, "Okay, she stays here for the week. Let's keep the possibility of this person coming back for her between us. I don't want to scare her anymore than she already is."

  "Who do you think could do something like this?" Derek asked, mimicking Logan's frustrated hand combing through his hair.

  "I have no idea. I never thought Baxter would kill his ten year old daughter," Logan said with a heavy sigh.

  "Well, on that note, I'm going to wake her up," Kat said, turning around.

  "Don't wake her up. She needs her rest," Logan said, annoyed, getting Kat to stop in her tracks and glance back at him.

  "I told her I'd wake her up right away when you got back. I've already gone against my word. She needs to trust us, Logan. And if I don't keep my word, she won't," Kat said with a serious face. Logan nodded in defeat, knowing each word was true.

  "Keep playing the word games with her. Her memory may come back sooner rather than later. And don't ask her questions. Give her two words to pick from, like small or large." Kat smiled, turned around, and walked back inside.

  "Why would she use the words small or large as an example?" Derek asked, amused.

  Logan pierced a pointed glare at him. "First words to pop into her head, I guess.

  "Right. I'll check in with Charlotte and call you with the progress. But I'll head over to Dr. Matthews first," Derek said, heading to his car.

  "Good. Thanks for the help today," Logan said, waving a hand good-bye. "Get the four-wheelers out tomorrow?"

  "Yep. Sounds like a plan," Derek said, sliding into his car, slamming his door shut as Logan walked up the steps to the cabin.

  He opened the door, stopping in his tracks as he reveled in the most beautiful smile he had ever laid eyes on.

  "You're back. It's almost dark. What took you so long?" Doni asked, still a little groggy from her nap.

  Logan closed the door and made a few quick steps until he was kneeling right by her side. "We were tracking. We found the tree you mentioned and the hill. I'm pretty sure all these scrapes and scratches are from the hill."

  She rested her head to the side as she stared into his sorrowful eyes. "You think I fell down the hill?"

  "I know. Your feet, albeit very sore and damaged right now, provided an easy trail for us. We followed a small blood trail to the top of the hill, then for roughly another half mile until it disappeared. We didn't see anything else. I'm going to keep on this case, though. I'll figure this out. Don't worry, please," Logan said, almost reaching for her cheek when he saw his sister standing in the kitchen.

  "Such confidence. Your sister's just like you, you know," she whispered.

  "I'll take that as a compliment," he said with a bit of hesitation.

  "Yes."

  Logan smiled, standing up as he saw Kat walk over to them. "He's a lug nut sometimes, though. Don't fill his head with too many compliments, he might blow up."

  Doni laughed as Logan raised an eyebrow at her mockery, but refrained from responding. He liked hearing her laugh. Not like her tears that brought a strange pain to his heart.

  Suddenly Kat said, "Chicken or steak?"

  "Steak."

  "Ranch or Italian?"

  "Ranch.

  "Breadsticks or rolls?"

  "Rolls."

  "Minnesota or no?"

  "No."

  "You might want to expand the missing persons search out-of-state," Kat said, walking back to the kitchen. "I'll get the steaks a-cooking. You do have steaks, right, Logan?"

  "Yeah, in the freezer. No rolls, though," Logan said with a grin.

  Kat looked over at him. "I'll be sure to bring some next time I come."

  Logan knelt back down by Doni. "I guess that game works well. I'll have Charlotte expand the search outside of Minnesota. Anything else ring a bell?"

  "No. But...she said just to pick the first word that comes to mind. I...I could be wrong," Doni said with a tremor.

  Logan almost reached for her hand, but heard his sister slam a cupboard and stopped himself. "I don't think so. I think that's your memory trying to break through. We'll check all of Minnesota, just to be safe. But sounds like maybe you're not from here. And you have a brother...and you're not married."

  "When did she tell you that?"

  "Right before she woke you up. And I really didn't want her to wake you up. You need the rest."

  "I wanted to see you. I was worried."

  "Well, I'm here now. I'm all yours for the rest of the night," he said with a wink.

  Chapter 5

  Derek pulled on the clinic doors, the locks firmly in place. He saw Dr. Matthews walking down the hallway towards the back. He knocked on the door, waving at Dr. Matthews as he turned around.

  He waited patiently for Dr. Matthews to open the door, yet the words tumbled around his mind as he tried to figure out what he would say.

  "Deputy Graham, are you okay? I was just shutting down for the night," Dr. Matthews said, pulling the door open and gesturing for him to step inside.

  "Just fine, Doc. Just need a moment of your time, if you don't mind."

  "No, no, that's fine. Come on back to my office. Can we talk while I put some files away?" Dr. Matthews asked, locking the door again.

  "Of course."

  Derek followed him to his office situated on the opposite side of the clinic. He glanced around as Dr. Matthews went to his desk and started to collect all the files that were in a disarray on his desk.

  "It gets so busy in here sometimes that I just don't have time to put one file away after another one lands in my hand. It was extra busy today when Kat had to leave me early."

  Derek cleared his throat. "Yeah, Doc, that's why I wanted to talk to you. The sheriff found a woman last night in his cabin. No memory, bruised, but overall, she seemed fine enough where she didn't need to go to the hospital."

  Dr. Matthews frowned with surprise. "Are you sure? Memory loss can be a tricky thing. How come I wasn't informed? How come the sheriff didn't want me to look at her? Not that I mind Kat did, she knows what she's doing. She's a wonderful nurse."

  "She's scared, Doc. The sheriff thought it best that a woman looked her over, you know."

  "Of course, that makes perfect sense. Do you know what happened to her?"

  "No, we're still in the preliminary stages. She just showed up out of nowhere. No identification on her, no memory of anything or who she is. We're searching the woods for any sign of where she came from. Charlotte's running her prints, so we hope to get something back from that."

  Dr. Matthews sat down, his frown deepening. "That is just terrible to hear. Mr. Baxter…now this. What's happening to our town, Derek?"

  Derek took a seat across from him. He knew the doctor was in shock. He always kept it professional, even though Derek didn't mind him addressing him by his first name. He rarely displayed this sort of emotion. He knew how to keep it together and not lose his cool. Derek had been here to help Logan with Brittany's body. He barely could function, his emotions exposed to the world. Dr. Matthews, though, reacted with detachment, calling out orders with a calmness that indicated he dealt with this sort of cruelness on a daily basis.

  But he didn't. They rarely saw this kind of terror in their small county.

  Dr. Matthews was just that kind of person. He always liked to keep it professional. He knew, in that moment, Dr. Matthews had nothing to do with this woman. H
is gut told him so, and his gut had never been wrong. Logan told him to get a feeling from the doctor, and he felt secure enough to share their concerns with him.

  "I don't know what's happening in this town anymore, Doc. I wish I did. The sheriff tried to get her to come in. She plain refused. She's terrified just hearing the word doctor. Why do you think that is?"

  Dr. Matthews looked up, reflecting. "Oh, a multitude of reasons. Maybe she's always had a fear of doctors. Maybe she's just scared in general. Or…maybe because a doctor is the one who hurt her. What do you think, Deputy Graham?"

  "I think those are all good reasons." Derek leaned forward. "Not that I think you hurt her. That wasn't what I was suggesting at all."

  Dr. Matthews smiled. "You're just doing your job. Never leave anyone out of the equation, including me. I am the doctor of this town. It makes sense to question me first. My life's an open book. Like most people in this town, or, at least I thought so." His mind shifted to the image of Brittany's body lying in, what he liked to call, his mini morgue. Death existed. He dealt with it occasionally, natural deaths usually. He needed a place to put the person until a funeral could be arranged. He needed no other reason to step into that particular room.

  Death.

  You can never escape it. He hated dealing with it.

  He still had a hard time shoving away the death of Brittany. Even as her uncle whisked her away from his view, he still saw her every time he closed his eyes.

  "I guess we're all capable of hiding things. Here's a picture of her. It's not pretty." Derek handed his phone to Dr. Matthews.

  He puckered his lips as he stared long and hard at the picture. A woman with light brown hair, a hint of red mingled in, and sad soulful eyes stared back. He tried to look at it with the eyes of many years of experience, not with shock and rage that someone would hurt this woman. The scratches and bruises adorning her face made him sick to his stomach.

  "I don't recognize her. I also don't see any major wounds on her face or head that would cause her memory loss."

  "We think she rolled down a hill. Most of those scratches are fresh, most likely from that. I didn't think you'd recognize her. Damn, with none of us recognizing her, that means she's not from the area. We really need those prints to come back with something."